Associate Professor of Food Safety and Quality Systems
joy.waite-cusic [at] oregonstate.edu

Office: 541-737-6825

Joy Waite-Cusic is Associate Professor of Food Safety and Quality Systems.
Joy’s integrated food safety systems program combines research, teaching, and outreach to assist food production and processing industries (and consumers) in improving food safety to minimize foodborne illness. Joy’s research program covers four thematic areas: (1) pre-harvest food safety, (2) process validation, (3) prevalence of pathogens in food systems, and (4) microbiological quality indicators and spoilage. A list of formal publications can be found here. More information on specific projects, including ongoing projects, can be found on the Research Projects page.

At OSU

Affiliated with:

Food Science and Techno

Career Links:

Waite-Cusic Lab

Department of Food Science & Technology

Student(s):

Madeleine Enriquez

Jason Racine

Professional Accomplishments

Education:

B.S. 2002 - Oregon State University, Food Science & Technology
M.S. 2004 - Oregon State University, Microbiology
Ph.D. 2007 - The Ohio State University, Food Science & Technology

My Awards

My Publications

Publications list

Outreach and Extension

Extension Service Site Publications

(2024) Play it safe when preserving elderberries Many people enjoy the taste of elderberries, but beware — all varieties of elderberries are toxic. You need to cook them before you eat them. Learn how to safely process elderberries into delicious, nutritious treats.
(2021) OSU study finds that using cold water to make 'sprouted' foods lowers the risk of salmonella growth An Oregon State University study published in 2021 found that soaking raw ingredients – usually grains, nuts or seeds – to make "sprouted" foods lowers the risk of salmonella growth on these increasingly popular healthy snack foods.
(2021) Can I soak pickles to reduce salt?
(2020) Are home-preserved gifts safe to eat?
(2019) Is there cyanide in lima beans?
(2018) On-Farm Readiness Reviews (OFRRs) On-Farm Readiness Review (OFRR) is designed as a tool to help regulators and educators effectively prepare farmers for compliance with Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA)'s produce safety rule.

My Media

My News Articles:

Western Innovator: Tracking down food contamination

Joy Waite-Cusic conducts laboratory work as part of her food safety research.

To Joy Waite-Cusic, water, romaine lettuce and onions illustrate the different worlds researchers encounter when they study produce safety.

Full story

Primary tabs

Joy Waite-Cusic

Wiegand Hall

3051 SW Campus Way

Extension Service Site Publications

Western Innovator: Tracking down food contamination

Western Innovator: Tracking down food contamination

Student Resources

Employee Resources

New Employees